The Sanskrit Drama in its Origin, Development, Theory & Practice c22.s3.5

c22.s3.5

How far the dramas were viewed by the public in general we cannot say; the rules regarding the play-house contemplate the presence of Cūdras, but that is a vague term, and may apply to a very restricted class of royal hangers on. We have the general rule² that barbarians, ignorant people, heretics, and those of low class should not be admitted, but such prescriptions mean very little. There must, it is clear, have been the utmost variation in the character of the audience according to the place and circumstances of representation. At great festivals, when plays were given in the temples, there must have been admission for as many as could be crowded in; in private exhibitions the audience may well have been more select. The fact that the dramas must have been largely unintelligible to all save a select few of the audience would not matter much; a drama was essentially a spectacle; in many cases its subject was perfectly familiar to the audience, and the elaborate use of conventional signs must have been enough to aid many of the audience in following roughly the nature of the proceedings.